Shooting Perpetrator in Brussels Admits to Being a Member of ISIS

ISIS illustration. (Wikimedia Commons/VOA)

JAKARTA - The perpetrator of the shooting that left two Swedish national team fans dead in Brussels, Monday, October 16 local time, claimed to be a member of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

Two people were shot dead and several others injured near the heart of Brussels, Belgium on Monday evening after a man armed with an AK-47 allegedly shouted "Allahu Akbar," opened fire, and fled the scene, according to local media reports.

Belgian media, Sudinfo, reported that the attacker, who opened fire after getting off his scooter, shot two victims who were reportedly wearing Swedish national football team jerseys.

In a widely circulated video, a man can be seen claiming that he is a member of the terrorist organization ISIS and that he shot three Swedes to avenge the deaths of Muslims.

The violence occurred ahead of a Euro 2024 qualifying football match between Belgium and Sweden scheduled for Monday evening at the King Baudouin Stadium, about three miles away from where the shooting occurred.

The match was stopped after the first half at 1-1 because the shooter was still being sought. Fans remained inside the stadium as a safety precaution.

Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, in a post on X (formerly Twitter), condemned the incident as a "cowardly attack" and asked citizens to be alert as the suspect appeared to be on the loose.

“I am monitoring the situation closely, together with the Minister of Justice and the Minister of Home Affairs from (the crisis center),” De Croo wrote.

"We are monitoring the situation and asking the people of Brussels to be alert," he wrote again.

Video circulating on social media and shown on Belgian news broadcasts reportedly taken at the scene shows a man in a bright orange shirt shooting at fleeing pedestrians.

The man is seen chasing several people, following them into a building before firing his gun again.

According to Sudinfo, the suspect said he shot the two people to “take revenge on Muslims” and added that “we live and die for our religion.” The man was seen fleeing the scene on his scooter, the media reported.

Police spokeswoman Ilse Vande Keere said officers immediately arrived at the scene and cordoned off the neighbourhood. He refused to explain further about the background to the shooting.

The shooting comes at a time of heightened alarm over the ongoing Israel-Hamas war and has raised tensions in several European countries.